Part 54: Episode 3: Of Mice and Ansems

Sorry for the delay, been very busy.

Episode 3: Of Mice and Ansems




You know it's really hard to quit when they keep offering like this.




Oh boy, I recognize THAT sillouette.


Yep, there he is. Ansem. The final boss of Kingdom Hearts 1, who possessed Riku when he surrendered his heart to darkness. Sora defeated Ansem and freed Riku, but it looks like not completely.




Possibly the biggest understatement of the year.


"You want to pull me back into the darkness and play puppet master again... right?"


Oh yeah, Ansem kinda lacks a body right now since Sora went and destroyed it.



Riku makes a flying leap at Ansem.


This ends about as can be expected.


"A weakling like you couldn't even defeat Sora--and you had darkness on your side."

Well to be fair Sora had light on HIS side you know.


"I seem to remember you dying horribly to Sora too Mr. High and Mighty DARKNESS man..."




Darkness darkness darkness darkness darkness...


Light?



Well gee, I wonder who it is?!



It's very difficult to see, (yay for white on white) but there's a shiny yellowish-white fairy sparkly floating in a circle around Riku's head and talking with Mickey's voice.


"You'll always find it, even in the deepest darkness, but you have to believe!"



This game really touches on how deep the Mickey/Riku friendship goes. They're as close as Sora, Donald and Goofy, but it's almost all offscreen in the main series.


Ansem attacks!


He's similar to the first phase of the final fight with him in KH1. He has his 'guardian' heartless with him and he yells "SUBMIT!" a lot.



Ansem can throw lightning at you and his sleight, Rockbreaker has him blitz around the screen for a while. Riku's got a specific deck for the white corridor bosses though, mostly high cards with a bunch of 0's at the back. It makes this easy.


Riku has one friend card in his game, and that's Mickey. When you throw a Mickey, he does three things. 1st, he stuns and knockbacks all the enemies on screen. Second, he heals Riku. Third he reshuffles Riku's deck for him during the duration of the summon. This is Riku's ONLY way to heal in his entire game, and he isn't always available. Sleighting Mickeys just strengthens the heal.

You know for all that talk of 'Darkness', Ansem sure does die fast.



"Very well. See with your own eyes."
I'm glad we've finally come to an understanding.



"Advance through the worlds they beget, and you will come to understand...
Chasing the light will not distance you from the dark.
You cannot run."




Ansem isn't really sure it works that way.


Is it a pony? I want a pony.


OW! THIS IS NOT A PONY.



Thanks, really!




Ansem warps out, leaving Riku alone with his cards.


Oh yes, and this. When Riku breaks cards or takes damage he builds up points in a new meter. When those points hit 30, he gives a manly yell and backflips into his skirt. While in spandex, Riku can sleight. I'll show these off as soon as we get decks that can do them.

I think that's a good stopping point for today, be sure to tune in next time for more whacky Organization Politics (you didn't think Riku had escaped their notice did you?) in-

Episode 4: Darkness Tastes Like Chicken